00.56am Make sure to join us again tomorrow at Sports Mole, with another three live games coming your way, including those from Holland and Spain in Group B. Thanks for joining me tonight, but be sure to stay awake as we bring you some reaction and analysis.
00.53am The real talking point was Akinfeev’s clanger. The Russian stopper will be a relieved man after his awful mistake for South Korea’s goal, and it would be no surprise to see Capello replace him next time out.
00.52am A much better second half from these sides, which is strange because Son’s influence on the game wained at the game went on. The introduction of Dzagoev made a huge difference for Russia, who will be disappointed not to have created more chances to win the game.
00.51am FULL TIME: RUSSIA 1-1 SOUTH KOREA
90+3 min CHANCE Well that will be it for Russia, as Kokorin’s centre is blasted over at the back post by Samedov. Kerzhakov wanted it played on the floor to him and he’s not happy. That should be that.
90+1 min Samedov’s poor chipped free-kick into the box is easy for South Korea to clear. Russia come forward again, commit a foul and the attack is over.
90 min YELLOW CARD Koo is booked for South Korea, and we are to have four added minutes.
89 min Russia are going for the win without throwing the kitchen sink at this. They’re playing a couple of balls into the box, but none really feel like they’re going to end with a goal or even a real chance.
CHANCE Half-chance really, with Kokorin heading over. His neat play gave Kombarov the chance to cross, however the striker cannot aim his effort down and it flies over the top.
87 min Both sets of players are visibly tiring here, but can one of them muster a little more to take the three points?
85 min This game seems to have lost its spark a little since Russia’s equaliser, with a third goal to win it looking unlikely in my opinion.
83 min The ball is played into Kokorin, who struggles to take it under his control. His had a pretty disappointing evening by all accounts, the young Russian striker.
82 min SUBSTITUTION South Korea make their last change, with Cardiff City’s Kim Bo-Kyung coming on for danger man Son Hyueng-Min.
81 min CHANCE Kokorin’s attempt to shoot is blocked and it falls to Dzagoev, who drags his shot from distance just wide.
79 min Akinfeev gets his first touch since the goal, claiming a simple catch. Mind you, he should have stopped the opening goal!
78 minSon shuffles to find space but Ignashevich stops him. South Korea ten go down the right and the goalscorer Lee wins a corner.
76 min South Korea mount their first attack since they scored but Ignashevich wins the ball. Samedov almost plays Dzagoev in, and Russia are looking far more dangerous now. Should be a good final 15 minutes here.
74 min He’s only been on for five minutes, but Kerzhakov has levelled the match and it’s all about the substitutes. Dzagoev swivels in the box and shoots and Jung makes a good save but he can’t parry it out. Kerzhakov adjusts his feet excellently and pokes the ball home. Nobody will be happier than Igor Akinfeev.
73 min GOAL FOR RUSSIA
72 min SUBSTITUTION Both teams make changes, with Hong going off for Hwang Seo-Kho. Denisov has replaced for Glushakov Russia’s final sub.
70 min Well, that goal has certainly opened this game up. Akinfeev is still standing with his hands on his knees, desperately wanting the ground to eat him up. It should be a simple catch for him. Shocking goalkeeping.
68 min SUBSTITUTION Kerzhakov replaces Zhirkov, who has had very little impact tonight.
67 min It’s the substitute Lee Keun-Ho, but it’s an absolute howler from Akinfeev in goal! Yet another shot from distance, with Lee powering forward. He feinted shooting twice, and when he did, the keeper didn’t look ready for it at all. Akinfeev pushed the ball up, scooping it into his own net. Shocking error, and he looks disgusted with himself.
67 min GOAL FOR SOUTH KOREA
65 min Kombarov delivers a brilliant ball into the box which Jung punches clear excellently. Russia manage to cross again but Kokorin fouls the keeper and the danger passes.
62 min At the other end, Kombarov fires left-footed from distance. Jung parries after a difficult bounce, but I can honestly say I’ve never seen so many shots cause two keepers as much trouble as these are. Neither keeper looks solid here at all.
61 min CHANCE It’s not a bad ball from Ki, which Hong meets in the six yard box. Akinfeev collects easily.
61 min Clumsy from Yeshchenko, who commits a foul and South Korea will be able to whip a ball into the box.
59 min Dzagoev is likely to go straight into a central role behind Kokorin I would imagine. Hopefully he can have an impact for Russia, who haven’t mounted an attack since the first 30 seconds of the half.
58 min SUBSTITUTION Dzagoev is going to enter the fray, with Capello opting to replace Shatov with him.
56 min They do shoot, but it’s not Son who hits it. Instead, Kim hammers it left-footed and for the third time in ten minutes, Akinfeev looks uncomfortable making the save. His parry encourages Han to go for the rebound, and the midfielder is hurt in the aftermath.
55 min Ki wins a free-kick off of Kokorin. It’s central but a long way out and it would be a surprise to see them shoot from here. Son looks like he’s going to hit it though!
54 min SUBSTITUTION Lee Keun-Ho comes on for South Korea, replacing Park Chu-Young up front.
52 min Lee jumps highest from the corner, but his header has Akinfeev untroubled.
51 min Son gets the better of Shatov and wins a corner for his team. South Korea are in the ascendency here.
50 min Another long-range effort, this time from Ki. His effort bounces in front of Akinfeev, who spills the ball again. Luckily for him, he gathers quickly before Park can pounce.
49 min Koo takes a pop from distance, forcing Akinfeev into an awkward looking parry. This is certainly a better game already though.
48 min?YELLOW CARD?Shatov goes into the book for Russia after a poor challenge on Lee Yong.
47 min Russia slow the pace back down again following their better start to the half. If they show more ambition, they’ll surely create chances.
46 min 27 seconds in and Russia arguably have their best moment of the game as Fayzulin shoots from range. Jung parries over and Berezutskiy wins the header from the resulting corner. His effort goes wide, but it’s close and Russia look better already.
45 min South Korea start the second half. Lets hope for an early goal to spring this game into life.
11.51pm With a lack of creativity in the Russian ranks so far, maybe Capello will also bring on Alan Dzagoev at some point. Dzagoev remember was one of the joint-top scorers of Euro 2012.
11.50pm Russia however have been extremely poor. Bar a hopeful Ignashevich free-kick piledriver, they have offered very little going forward. Kokorin is struggling up front, so you wonder whether experienced head Aleksandr Kerzhakov might be introduced soon.
11.48pm To be fair to South Korea, they’ve shown a bit more ambition than Russia going forward. Son looks lively and everything good that they’ve done has gone through him, unsurprisingly. He will be annoyed with himself for thrashing at that half-chance he had though.
11.47pm Well, that wasn’t too great. No goals, no real clear chances – this game is going against the grain of this tournament so far!
11.46pmHALF TIME: RUSSIA 0-0 SOUTH KOREA
45 minThere will be a single minute of added time.
43 min It’s a nice spell of possession for South Korea, who are growing in confidence by the minute. Russia are going to have to do a lot more if they’re to win this one.
42 min Ki plays in an inviting ball but Berezutskiy clears. The Korean’s then work it right and then back, and the attack is effectively over.
41 min Son wins a corner after good link-up with Han. It looked like he was going to shoot again – maybe he thought twice after his last attempt.
40 min Zhirkov and Shatov combine down the left and cross. Kim is able to clear but Samedov keeps it alive down the right. Eventually, Kombarov gives it away and Korea attempt to break.
38 min CHANCE Awful finish from Son, who tries to blast the ball far too hard into the net. It followed excellent play from Park’s knock down, and Son will be bitterly disappointed to fire over so badly.
36 min Kokorin backs into Hong, who jumps too high and lands awkwardly. He’ll be ok, but he certainly landed badly.
34 min Clever corner, and Park almost flicks across the face of goal. Unlucky.
33 minCHANCE Up the other end, and Koo’s deflected effort leaves Akinfeev rooted to the spot. So close to flying in. Corner instead.
32 min Wasteful from Zhirkov after decent play from Kokorin. The striker plays it left to the ex-Chelsea man, who makes a poor decision in shooting from range and it goes wide.
30 minIgnashevich blasts the resulting free kick from all of 40 yards, forcing Jung to bat it clear. Probably Russia’s best attempt so far, despite it’s range.
29 minActually, on second look it’s not that bad a tackle. Ki certainly wins the ball, though perhaps the referee doesn’t like the fact that his second leg left the floor. It’s a strong challenge, rather than a poor one.
29 min YELLOW CARD Samedov gets to the ball ahead of Ki Sung-Yueng, whose touch is poor, and the South Korean midfielder is rightly booked.
27 min Kokorin holds the ball up, feeds it wide and then gets on the end of a cross from the left. It’s too high, but it’s a bit better from the young striker.
26 min Jung punches the corner away and although it is lashed back into the box, it strikes a white shirt and bounces safe.
26 minRussia win a corner after Ki tackles Shatov. Much better from Russia that move.
24 min Lee Yong whips in a cross which Akinfeev grasps with ease. It came after Son’s run wasn’t found by Park, who is maybe suffering from a lack of football. Barely a full 90 minutes played all season with either Arsenal, or on loan at Watford. This is his third World Cup.
23 min This isn’t a great game unfortunately, with neither Akinfeev or Jung Sung-Ryong between the sticks tested as yet.
22 min Lee Yong plays a ball into the box which Park nods down. Son attempts to get on the end of it but he’s a fraction off the pace as it comes down. It’s positive though for South Korea.
19 min Fayzulin plays a dangerous ball into the box from the left, and although Eshchenko gets to it, he can’t direct it goalwards.
18 min A better attack has Kokorin try to get on the end of Samedov’s cross from the right, however he is flagged offside.
17 min Skipper Berezutskiy once more goes long for Russia. It’s a poor tactic which isn’t working as yet, and Korea remain comfortable with it.
16 min Zhirkov makes his first run of the night, jinking past one defender. Eventually the ball goes to Fayzulin and then Kokorin, but the attack peters out.
15 min If anything, it’s Russia who are playing the long-game. Kokorin seems unable to make anything stick as yet, however.
14 min South Korea appear extremely reluctant to clear it long from the back. When they do stop Russian progress, they’re not afraid to play it around in defence.
12 min YELLOW CARD Son picks up the game’s first booking, though it appears extremely harsh as it looked as if Samedov wasn’t touched. Poor decision.
11 min Kombarov puts in another Russian cross, but again Kokorin is beaten easily in the air. South Korea look pretty comfortable here at the moment.
10 min South Korea have their first meaningful attempt, following excellent play from Koo. His header finds Son, who ignores his teammates and opts right, but as he reaches the box his lifts his shot over the top.
9 min Lee Chung-Yong attempts a defence splitting pass in the direction of Park. It’s perhaps a yard too far ahead of him, which is unlucky for South Korea.
7 min Kombarov delivers but it’s too high and Korea clear. Son tries to pull the strings in midfield but Russia get back well and snuff out any hopes of a counter attack.
6 min Russia are playing one-touch, triangular passes and Kim makes an error to concede the first corner of the game.
5 min South Korea try to play their way out of danger. When robbed of the ball, Fayzulin plays in another cross, but Kokorin is beaten in the air.
4 min Koo commits a foul on Glushakov in his own half and instead of playing the ball into the box, Russia work it right. They swing their first cross of the night in but it’s far too high and off-target.
3 min The ball is played to Kokorin in his own half but he can’t hold it up. It’s a mixed start, with both teams enjoying some possession.
1 min Star man Son picks up the ball straight away and treats the crowd to a nutmeg before running into a Russian player. The fans seem extremely vocal each time that Korea are in possession already.
0 min Here we go then, Russia get us underway in the final first-round match of the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
10.58pm Both anthems are now done and we’re ready for action. Russia are all in a dark red, maroon strip, while the Korean’s wear all-white.
10.55pm It’s been quite the wait for these two sides to finally get underway, with Brazil and Mexico in Group A both having played twice already! But we’re just five minutes away from kick-off now and the Russian national anthem is ringing around the stadium.
10.54pm PREDICTION: I took part in a World Cup guessing game pre-tournament and in that I predicted this result to be 2-0 in favour of the Russians. Based on the form of both of these sides, not much is making me change my mind, and I fancy them to come out on top in this one. Despite a modest record of five goals in his first 23 internationals, I’d like to see 23 year-old striker Aleksandr Kokorin have a good game. He’s set to be the poster-boy when Russia host the World Cup in four years time, so there’s certainly a lot of expectation on him.
10.52pm We have Argentinian officials in charge of this one, and 38 year-old Nestor Pitana is the man with the whistle tonight. Pitana has refereed almost 40 international matches since retiring as an actor in 2010 apparently! But no, I have no idea which films or television shows that he may have starred in!
10.47pm Speaking of the stadium, this is the second of four matches Cuiaba’s Arena Pantanal will host during the tournament. Over 40,000 were in attendance here on Friday as Chile defeated Australia 3-1 in Group B.
10.45pm These South Korean fans in the stadium certainly look ready. I’m not sure who has inspired their spiky red fire hair or body paint, but I like their commitment!
By Joe McPhee ? ?Source: sportsmole.co.uk
